The Dornier Viper was a
West German
West Germany was the common English name for the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG) from its formation on 23 May 1949 until its reunification with East Germany on 3 October 1990. It is sometimes known as the Bonn Republic after its capital c ...
/Norwegian
air-to-air missile
An air-to-air missile (AAM) is a missile fired from an aircraft for the purpose of destroying another aircraft (including unmanned aircraft such as cruise missiles). AAMs are typically powered by one or more rocket motors, usually solid-fuel roc ...
project, intended to replace the
AIM-9 Sidewinder
The AIM-9 Sidewinder is a short-range air-to-air missile. Entering service with the United States Navy in 1956 and the Air Force in 1964, the AIM-9 is one of the oldest, cheapest, and most successful air-to-air missiles. Its latest variants rema ...
, in ''
Luftwaffe
The Luftwaffe () was the aerial warfare, aerial-warfare branch of the before and during World War II. German Empire, Germany's military air arms during World War I, the of the Imperial German Army, Imperial Army and the of the Imperial Ge ...
'' service from 1975/76.
The Viper was developed by
Bodenseewerk
{{Infobox company
, name = Diehl Defence
, logo = Diehl Defence Logo.svg
, logo_size =
, logo_alt =
, logo_caption =
, image =
, image_size =
, image_alt =
, image_caption =
, trade_name =
, native_name =
, native_name_lang = ...
and Dornier Systems, using an
infrared
Infrared (IR; sometimes called infrared light) is electromagnetic radiation (EMR) with wavelengths longer than that of visible light but shorter than microwaves. The infrared spectral band begins with the waves that are just longer than those ...
seeker and a new
solid-fuel rocket
A rocket (from , and so named for its shape) is a vehicle that uses jet propulsion to accelerate without using any surrounding air. A rocket engine produces thrust by reaction to exhaust expelled at high speed. Rocket engines work entirely ...
motor (by ''Kongsberg Vapenfabrik''), intended to have twice the burn time of the Sidewinder.
In 1974, the Viper was abandoned in favor of evaluating an American missile.
*Length:
*Diameter:
*Weight:
References
Notes
Bibliography
* .
* {{citation , title = Viper, Dornier , editor-last = Fitzsimons , editor-first = Bernard , encyclopedia = The Illustrated Encyclopedia of 20th Century Weapons and Warfare , place = London , publisher = Phoebus , year = 1978 , volume = 24 , page = 2578.
Air-to-air missiles of Germany
Abandoned military projects of Germany
Air-to-air missiles of the Cold War